Sherlock Holmes The Man Behind The Genius
by Tage101
Summary: It is the entire season 1 and 2 of the new Sherlock Holmes tv show on BBC but with my own character as well.
1. Chapter 1

As I walked through the streets on London, I wondered why I was back. I mean I left this city 4 years ago without any warning and now I am back, all because of one phone call. Inspector Lestrade had called me 2 days ago. I have no idea how he got my number all he said was he had some case for me to look at. So here I was.

I soon found the small coffee shop that we had arranged to meet at and took a seat in the back. I watched the people around me, already knowing there life story by a quick glance. A few minutes later Lestrade sat next to me.

'Hello Tage' Lestrade said. I smiled and nodded to him. I wasn't much for conversation.

'How have you been?' He asked with a small smile on his face.

'Fine, now please what case is so important that I needed to come back here after 4 years' I asked my voice soft

'Straight to the point as always Tage, Now as you may have already figured out knowing you, I lied. Yes there is a case but it's not why I asked you back' Lestrade stated and I smirked

'I know, I know the real reason too but I am not interested in that, what is the case?" I asked again

'3 suicides by drugs in places they shouldn't have been' He stated quickly surprised I didn't want to talk about the real reason he asked me back.

'Have you talked to him about it yet?' I asked, both knowing who I was referring too.

'Not yet, I wanted your help first' He said in a whisper

'I don't work in these situations without him Lestrade; you know this' I said simply, quickly growing bored of this conversation. My light blue eyes looking around the coffee shop, my black hair was tied back in a messy bun. I am wearing long black jeans and a white t-shirt and long black jacket to cover my scars.

'The case seems to be too boring for him at the moment' Lestrade commented,

'So why should I find it any different?' I asked

'Because you were always the more slightly sane one out of the two and I believe it is something more than suicide' Lestrade said and I smiled slightly.

'There will be a forth if your theory is correct. When there is, contact me. Afternoon' I said before standing up and walking out of the coffee shop.

...


	2. Chapter 2

A few days later a got the call I was waiting for. I picked up the phone

'Where' I asked

'Brixton, Lauriston Gardens, he is going to be there as well. They left a note this time' Lestrade said before hanging up. I quickly put on my jacket and walked out of the apartment I was staying at.

'Taxi' I called out and got in.

'Brixton, Lauriston Gardens' I said and off went the taxi.

After a while the taxi pulled up. I paid him and walked over to the scene. There he was. Sally Donavan talking to Sherlock Holmes, my old friend and some guy I have never seen before.

'How do you get a colleague? You don't even have a friend, well not anymore, not since she left you' Donavan sneered

'Hello Donavan' I said as I walked over to the trio. Donavan was in shock much like Sherlock who was staring at me with wide eyes. Then the new comer just looked at all three of us confused.

'You were saying Donavan' Sherlock muttered.

'Tage, nice to see you again' Sherlock said to me as he gave me a quick hug and kiss on the cheek. I hugged him back and nodded.

'Freak's here, times two, bringing them in' Donavan said into the radio

'Tage, this is Dr John Watson, my colleague and new roommate' Sherlock introduced and nodded my hello.

Sherlock not so subtly was inspecting the area as I did it subtly and John watching in confusion. I rolled my eyes as I saw Anderson walk out.

'Hello Tage, long time no see' He smirked as he looked me up and down

'Ah, Anderson, here we are again' Sherlock stated, no emotion in his face or voice but as I have known Sherlock for a very long time I knew he was pissed off.

'It's a crime scene, I don't want it contaminated. Are we clear on that?" He said rudely

'Quite clear' Sherlock stated. Anderson looked over at me again and looked me up and down not so subtly. I rolled my eyes in disgust.

'And is your wife away for long?" Sherlock asked and I smirked, already knowing what he was going on about.

'Oh, don't pretend you worked that out. Somebody told you that' Anderson said pissed off

'Your deodorant told me that' Sherlock retorted

'My deodorant?" Anderson asked

'It's for men." Sherlock stated

'Well, of course it's for men – I'm wearing it' Anderson stated

'You hardly count as a man' I muttered

'I could show you how much of a man I really am Tage' He stated stepping closer to me. Sherlock stepped in-between us protectively though he knows I hardly need protection.

'Sergeant Donovan is wearing it as well' Sherlock stated his eyes betraying his anger.

'Ooh . . . I think it just vaporised. May I go in?" Sherlock asked as Anderson looked at Donovan

'Whatever you're trying to imply . . .' Anderson started to say

'I'm not implying anything. I'm sure Sally came round for a nice little chat and just happened to stay over and I assume she scrubbed your floors, going by the state of her knees. ' Sherlock said as he placed a hand on my lower back and we walked around Anderson into the building. I laughed silently and Sherlock looked down at me and smiled.

We walked through the building until we found Lestrade.

'You'll need to wear one of these' Sherlock stated to John as Lestrade was putting on a suit.

'Who's this?" Lestrade asked after nodding hello to me.

'He's with me' Sherlock stated

'But who is he?" Lestrade asked again

'I said he's with me' Sherlock said more firmly and I rolled my eyes.

'Aren't you going to put one on?' John asked Sherlock who simply smiled at him.

'So where are we?" Sherlock asked

'Upstairs' Lestrade answered, we walked up a fair few steps and all the while Sherlock was glancing at me. I knew he wanted to know why I was back, as well as why I left but was too stubborn to ask in front of people.

'I can give you two minutes' Lestrade said

'May need longer' Sherlock said back

'Her name is Jennifer Wilson, according to her credit cards. We're running them now for contact details, hasn't been here long, some kids found her' Lestrade informed us as we walked the stairs.

We walked into the room and in the centre of the flood laid a woman in a bright pink dress. I walked over to her and started quietly looking at her.

'Shut up' Sherlock said suddenly

'I didn't say anything' Lestrade replied

'You were thinking. It's annoying' Sherlock retorted.

'Sherlock' I said quietly both as a warning for being rude and for him to come over to me. He knelt down beside me and I pointed to the message in the floor.

_Rache _

'Rachel' I muttered and he nodded at me while smiling. I pointed to her ring and coat as well before standing up and letting him work.

'Got anything?' Lestrade asked me and I nodded but waited for Sherlock to talk

'Not much' Sherlock replied

'She's German. Rache, it's German for revenge, she could be trying to tell us . . . 'Anderson started to say but I walked over and shut the door in his face.

'Yes, thank you for your input' I muttered earning a smile from Lestrade, John and Sherlock.

'So she's German?" John asked

'No, she is from out of town though, Intended to stay in London for one night' I said my voice quiet.

'Before returning home to Cardiff – so far, so obvious.' Sherlock finished for me.

'Sorry, obvious?" John asked confused and I smiled at him

'What about the message, though?" Lestrade asked

'Dr. Watson, what do you think?" Sherlock asked

'Of the message?" John asked confused

'Of the body, you're a medical man' Sherlock said

'We have a whole team outside' Lestrade said

'They won't work with me.' Sherlock said stubbornly and I smiled.

'I wonder why' I muttered earning a confused glare from Sherlock.

'I'm breaking every rule letting you and Tage in here' Lestrade said

'Yes, because you need us' Sherlock boosted

'Yes, I do, god help me' Lestrade said in defeat

'Dr. Watson!" Sherlock said again

'Hm?" John looked over at Lestrade

'Oh, do as he says. Help yourself' Lestrade said walking to the door.

'Anderson, keep everyone out for a couple of minutes' Lestrade shouted out the door.

'Well?' Sherlock asked

'What am I doing here?" John asked as they knelt by the body and I leant up against the wall.

'Helping me make a point' Sherlock whispered

'I'm supposed to help you pay the rent' John said

'This is more fun' Sherlock said as I rolled my eyes at his choice of words

'Fun? There's a woman lying dead' John said in disbelief

'Perfectly sound analysis, but I was hoping you'd go deeper' Sherlock said seriously

'Sherlock, he meant that this shouldn't be fun' I explained and Sherlock nodded

'Oh' He muttered

John started to inspect the body as Lestrade walked back into the room. I quietly walked up next to him.

'You didn't tell Sherlock I was coming' I stated, Lestrade jumped a bit in surprised and I smirked.

'Yeah . . . asphyxiation probably. Passed out, chocked on her own vomit. Can't smell any alcohol on her. It could have been a seizure. Possibly drugs.' John said

'You know it was, you've read the papers' Sherlock snapped

'Well, she's one of the suicides. The forth?" John asked

'Sherlock, two minutes, I said. I need anything you've got.' Lestrade said

'Victim is in her late 30s. Professional person, going by her clothes, I'm guessing the media, going by the frankly alarming shade of pink, travelled from Cardiff today, intending to stay in London for one night from the size of her suitcase' Sherlock started to ramble.

'Suitcase?" Lestrade asked

'Yes, suitcase, she's been married at least ten years, but not happily. She's had a string of lovers but none of them knew she was married' Sherlock continued

'Oh, for god's sake, if you're just making this up . . . ' Lestrade said in disbelief.

'Her wedding ring, ten years old at least, the rest of her jewellery has been regularly cleaned but not her wedding ring, state of her marriage right there. The inside is shinier than the outside, so it's regularly removed. The only polishing it gets is when she works it off her finger. It's not for work, look at her nails. She doesn't work with her hands, so what or who does she remove her rings for? Not one lover, she'd never sustain the fiction of being single for that long, so more likely a string of them. Simple.' I stepped forward and explained

'That's brilliant' John commented staring at me both in surprised that I talked that much and in what I had said.

'Sorry' John said again as Sherlock looked at him

'Cardiff?" Lestrade asked

'It's obvious, isn't it?" Sherlock asked

'It's not obvious to me.' John said and Sherlock looked over at me in disbelief I just smiled and winked at him.

'Dear God, what is it like in your funny little brains? It must be boring' Sherlock commented

'Sherlock' I warned and he sighed

'Her coat- it's slightly damp, she's been in heavy rain in the last few hours – no rain anywhere in London in that time. Under her coat collar is damp too. She's turned it up against the wind. She's got an umbrella in her pocket, but it's dry and unused. Not just wind, strong wind – too strong to use her umbrella. We know from her suitcase that she was intending to stay overnight but she can't have travelled more than two or three hours because he coat still hasn't dried. So, where has there been heavy rain and strong wind within the radius of that travel time? Cardiff.' Sherlock said finishing his rant.

'That's fantastic' John said again

'Do you know you do that out loud?" Sherlock asked

'Sorry I'll shut up' John said embarrassed

'No, it's . . . fine' Sherlock said confused

'Still not use to people besides me and Lestrade thinking your talent is fantastic' I asked and Sherlock looked down.

'Why do you keep saying suitcase?" Lestrade asked

'Yes, where is it? She must have had a phone or an organiser. Find out who Rachel is.' Sherlock muttered looking around the empty room.

'She was writing Rachel?' Lestrade asked

'No, she was writing a angry German note, Of course she was writing Rachel, no other word it can be.' Sherlock snapped.

'Sherlock!' I snapped at him and he looked at me and sighed.

'But why did she wait until she was dying to write it?' Sherlock asked

'How do you know she had a suitcase?" Lestrade asked and Sherlock sighed impatiently

'Why do you ask him questions?" I asked Lestrade

'Can you explain it then?" Lestrade asked me.

'Tiny splash marks on her right heel and calf not present on the left. She was dragging a wheeled suitcase behind her with her right hand. Don't get that splash in any other way. Smallish case, going by the spread. Case that size, woman this clothes-conscious – could only be an overnight bag so we know she was staying one night' I explained and John looked at me in amazement once again.

'You're like him' John said and I laughed

'No, I have just been around him way to long' I comment and Sherlock looked up at me and smiled

'Where is it? What have you done with the suitcase?" Sherlock asked

'There wasn't a case' Lestrade said

'Say that again' Sherlock said

'There wasn't a case, there was never any suitcase' Lestrade said

'Suitcase! Did anyone find a suitcase? Was there a suitcase in this house?" Sherlock took off down the stairs shouting

'Oh great' I muttered

'What?" John asked

'If there is no suitcase here than it means we have a serial killer' I explained

'Why? Because this lady had a suitcase there is no doubt about that and it is not here which means that someone else was here with her' I explained. Sherlock was still shouting down stairs about some mistake the killer made and took off. I sighed and walked down stairs to find him gone. I ignored Anderson's stares and walked off into the darkness.


	3. Chapter 3

'Come to 221b Baker Street. SH'

I looked at the message I just got sent and sighed. I got my jacket and soon was in a taxi on my way to his house.

I walked up the stairs to see Sherlock lying down on the couch talking to John.

'It's no use, there's no other way. We'll have to risk it' Sherlock said staring up at the ceiling.

'On my desk there's a number. I want you to send a text' Sherlock said holding out the phone for John to take.

'You've brought me here to send a text' John asked clearly pissed off

'Say please Sherlock' I said scaring both Sherlock and John

'Tage, you know I hate it when you sneak up on me' Sherlock said glaring at me. I smiled innocently

'Which is why I do it Hun' I retorted earning another glare.

'Text, yes, the number on my desk' Sherlock said to John, ignoring me again. John looking very pissed off took the phone and looked outside.

'What's wrong?" I asked John as Sherlock sat up.

'I just met a friend of yours' John stated

'A friend?" Sherlock asked confused

'Sherlock doesn't have any friends besides me' I said

'A enemy' He stated

'Oh, which one?' He asked much more relaxed.

'Well, your arch-enemy, according to him. Do people have arch-enemies?' John asked as I went and sat on the arm chair of the lounge Sherlock was laying on.

'Did he offer you money to spy on me?' Sherlock asked not really caring

'Yes' John asked

'Did you take it?" Sherlock asked

'No' John replied taking a deep breath

'Pity, we could have split the fee, think it through next time' Sherlock said closing his eyes again as I rolled my eyes

'Who is he?' John asked not believing Sherlock's calm nature

'The most dangerous man you've ever met and not my problem right now' Sherlock answered. I rolled my eyes once more. Yes he is dangerous but he is not the most dangerous man I've ever met.

'On my desk, the number!' Sherlock said more forcefully. I hit him lightly in the foot and glared at him as he looked at me.

John walked over to his desk and picked up a piece of paper

'Jennifer Wilson, that was . . . hang on wasn't that the dead woman?' John asked

'Yes, that's not important, just enter the number' Sherlock said impatiently.

'Are you doing it?" Sherlock asked

'Yes' John replied

'Have you done it?' Sherlock asked straight after

'Yes, hang on' John replied angrily

'These words exactly 'What happened at Lauriston Gardens? I must have black out. 22 Northumberland street, please come' Sherlock recited

'You black out?" John asked and I sighed

'What? No . . . No!' Sherlock cried out angrily as he got up

'Type and send it, quickly' Sherlock said as he walked over to the table and chairs and got a pink suitcase from the chair. I looked at the suitcase and knew whose it was straight away.

'Have you sent it?' Sherlock asked impatiently

'What's the address?' John asked

'22 Northumberland Street, hurry up!' Sherlock said as he opened the suitcase and started looking in it. I walked over and stood behind Sherlock who was sitting next to the suitcase.

'That's . . . that's the pink lady's case, that's Jennifer Wilson's case' John stated confused

'Yes . . . obviously' Sherlock said staring at the case and then sighed

'Oh, perhaps I should mention – _I _didn't kill her' Sherlock stated

'I never said you did' John said staring at Sherlock

'Why not? Given the text he just asked you to send and the fact that I have her case, it's a perfectly logical assumption' I stated

'Do people usually assume you're the murderer?" John asked Sherlock and I smiled

'Now and then, yes' I replied while Sherlock had a crooked smile on his face.

'Ok . . . How did you get this?" John asked as he came and sat next to Sherlock and I

'By looking' Sherlock replied

'Where?' John asked but Sherlock didn't reply so instead John looked up at me. I gave him a small smile

'The killer must have driven her to Lauriston Gardens. He could only keep her case by accident if it was in a car. Nobody could be seen with this case without drawing attention – particularly a man, which is statistically more likely, so he'd feel compelled to get rid of it the moment he noticed he had it, wouldn't have taken him more than 5 minutes to realise his mistake. So Sherlock no doubt, checked every backstreet wide enough for a car five minutes from Lauriston Gardens and anywhere you could dispose of a bulky object without being observed' I explained to John earning a smile from Sherlock.

'Took me less than an hour to find the right skip' Sherlock commented

'So how do you two know each other?" John asked. I smiled and placed a hand on Sherlock's shoulder

'I grew up next to his family, his family almost raised me like their own' I explained, John simply nodded. I looked down and noticed Sherlock was staring at me with curious eyes. I gave him a small smile. He opened his mouth to say something but John cut him off

'Pink, you got all that because you realised her case would be pink?" John asked

'It had to be pink, obviously' Sherlock stated as if it was the clearest thing in the would

'Why didn't I think of that?" John asked

'Because you are an idiot' Sherlock stated without thinking earning a wack in the back of the head from me.

'No, No, don't look like that, practically everyone is. Now look, do you see what's missing?' Sherlock asked,

'From the case? How could I?" John asked sarcastically and looked over at me; I made a phone symbol with my hand

'Her phone, where's her mobile phone?" Sherlock asked

'There was no phone on the body, there's no phone in the case, and we know she had one, you just texted it' Sherlock stated

'Maybe she left it at home' John said

'She has a string of lovers and she's careful about it. She never leaves her phone at home' Sherlock said

'Why did I just send that text?" John asked confused

'Well, the question is where her phone is now?" Sherlock said

'She could have lost it' John said

'Yes, or?" I said trying to push John in the right direction

'The murderer . . . you think the murderer has the phone?' John asked Sherlock but his eyes were looking at me and I nodded

'Maybe she . . . left it when she left her case, maybe he took it from her for some reason, either way the balance of probability is the murderer has her phone' Sherlock explained

'Sorry . . . what are we doing? Did I just text a murderer? What good will that do?' John asked slightly scared when suddenly the phone started ringing.

'A few hours after his last victim and now he receives a text that can only be from her. If somebody had just found that phone they'd ignore a text like that but the murderer would panic' Sherlock said flipping the suitcase closed. Sherlock stood up and grabbed his coat.

'Have you talked to the police?" John asked

'Four people are dead, there isn't time' Sherlock replied

'So why are you talking to me?' John asked

'Mrs Hudson took my skull' Sherlock explained

'So I'm basically filling in for your skull?' John asked

'Relax, you're doing fine' Sherlock replied

'Well, what about Tage?' John asked and I looked at him and smiled

'Tage, doesn't count' Sherlock replied carefully, not looking at my face

'Why not?' John asked confused and I laughed softly

'Because I disappeared 4 years ago without warning and now I'm back without warning and Sherlock cannot figure out why I left, where I went or why I am back and it annoys him' I explained before walking over and kissing a slightly blushing Sherlock on the cheek and walking downstairs.

'You mean the great Sherlock Holmes can't figure out something' John teased

'Well?' Sherlock asked

'Well what?" John asked

'Well . . . you could sit there and watch telly' Sherlock said

'You want me to come with you?" John asked

'Of cause he does but he won't admit it and we are losing time so hurry up and get your asses down here boys' I shouted.

...


	4. Chapter 4

'Where are we going?" John asked as we got out of the taxi and started walking

'Northumberland Street's a five minute walk from here' Sherlock explained

'You think he's stupid enough to go there' John asked

'No, I think he's brilliant enough. I love the brilliant ones, they're all so desperate to get caught' Sherlock replied and John just looked at me confused. I smiled

'Why' John said

'Appreciation, Applause, at long last the spotlight' I explained

'That's the frailty of genius, John, it needs an audience' Sherlock commented

'Yeah' John stated

'This is his hunting ground right here in the heart of the city. Now that we know his victims were abducted, that changes everything' Sherlock commented while we were still walking, John once again looked at me confused

'Because all of his victims disappeared from busy streets, crowded places, but nobody saw them go' I explained and John nodded before looking back at Sherlock

'Think! Who do we trust, even though we don't know them? Who passes unnoticed wherever they go? Who hunts in the middle of a crowd?' Sherlock asked

'I don't know, who?" John asked

'Haven't the faintest, hungry?" Sherlock asked as we turned into a small shop, the shop keeper showed us to a table near the window

'Thank you Billy' Sherlock said as he sat down on one side and John sat down on the other, I slide in next to Sherlock

'22 Northumberland street, keep your eye on it' Sherlock said as we sat down

'He's not just going to ring the doorbell; He'd need to be mad' John commented

'He _has _killed four people' Sherlock retorted

'Ok' John said, giving up, Sherlock returned to staring out the window, a man soon came over

'Sherlock! Anything on the menu, whatever you want, free, on the house for you and your dates' the shop keeper said after shaking Sherlock's hand. I laughed silently as I nodded my head in thanks when the man passed me the menu.

'Do you want to eat?" Sherlock asked both John and I

'I'm not his date' John stuttered out as I laughed silent, my body shaking. Sherlock just raised his eye brows at me in confusion.

'This man got me off a murder charge' the man explained

'This is Angelo, three years ago, I proved to Lestrade at the time of a particularly vicious triple murder, that Angelo was in a different part of town, house-breaking' Sherlock explained

'He cleared my name' Angelo explained

'I cleared it a bit, anything happening opposite' Sherlock asked

'Nothing, but for this man, I'd gone to prison' Angelo stated

'You _did _go to prison' Sherlock reminded him

'I'll get a candle for the table, it's more romantic' Angelo said ignoring Sherlock's statement and walked off

'I'm not his date' John tried to explain again

'Are you just invisible Tage?' John asked me since everyone was ignoring the fact I was there and just thinking John was his date

'I am very good at going unnoticed' I explained

'You might as well eat. We might have to wait a long time' Sherlock said to John and I, I however was already eating some bread

'Where did you get that from?' John asked and I just smiled.

'Don't bother asking questions about where she got things from or where she was' Sherlock explain, an obvious double meaning in the statement. I rolled my eyes at him.

'People don't have arch-enemies' John commented after a few minutes of silence

'I'm sorry?' Sherlock asked

'In real life, there are no arch-enemies in real life, it doesn't happen' John explained

'Doesn't it? Sounds a bit dull' Sherlock retorted still staring out the window

'So who did I meet?' John asked

'What do people have, then, in their 'real lives''? Sherlock asked ignoring John's question

'Friends, People they know, people they like, people they don't like, girlfriends, boyfriends' John explained

'Yes, well, as I was saying, dull' Sherlock said with a bored tone. I rolled my eyes at him

'You don't have a girlfriend then?' John asked at this point I was crying with silent laughter, my face hidden on Sherlock's shoulder. Sherlock looked down at me with both amusement in his eyes but a confused look on his face

'Girlfriend? No, not really my area' Sherlock replied which once again sent me into another burst of silent laughter

'Oh, right, do you have a boyfriend? Which is fine by the way' John asked speaking carefully as I continued to silently laugh into Sherlock's shoulder

'I know its fine' Sherlock said

'So you've got a boyfriend then?" John asked

'No' Sherlock replied quickly.

'Right, ok, you're unattached, like me, fine, good' John said looking at his plate. Sherlock was looking at him cautiously.

After a few minutes of awkward silence

'John, I think you should know, I consider myself married to my work and while I'm flattered I'm not really looking for any . . . ' Sherlock said carefully which of course sent me into another wave of silent laughter

'No . . . I'm not asking . . . no. I'm just saying, it's all fine' John spoke firmly and carefully

'Tage, have you always not made a sound when you laugh?" John asked me quickly changing the topic. I sobered up very quickly after that question but before I could reply Sherlock did

'No, she once had a beautiful laugh' Sherlock commented looking at me with confused and questioning eyes.

'Look at the street, the taxi, it's stopped, nobody getting in and nobody getting out' I commented drawing the questioning eyes away from me

'Why a taxi? Oh that's clever, is it clever? Why is it clever?' Sherlock commented all thoughts of Tage's laugh gone from his mind . . . for now

'That's him' I stated

'Don't stare' Sherlock commented

'_You're _staring'John said

'We can't both stare' Sherlock said before getting up with his jacket and walking outside, John followed him, successfully leaving his walking cane behind. I smirk at Sherlock's genius. I watched from the window as Sherlock took off running along with John. I sighed and casually ate the rest of my meal before picking up John's walking cane. I casually made my way back to 221b Baker Street.

I knocked on the door and Mrs Hudson opened it

'Oh hello dear, Sherlock isn't home I'm afraid' She replied as I walked in with her.

'It's ok John just left his walking cane I am returning it' I said softly smiling at her.

'Ok dear, well you can wait up there for them' She replied before walking off

I smiled as I walked up the stairs. I looked around their apartment and smiled.

'Just like ours was' I muttered to myself. I soon found Sherlock's room and of course I went in.

It looked exactly like the one at our apartment, same bed, same furniture, and even the same photo. I looked surprised as I picked up the photo which was on Sherlock's bed-side table. It was of 4 people. One was a younger Sherlock Holmes, the other was a younger me, we stood side by side, his arm around my shoulder's in a friendly way. Next to us were Sherlock's elder brother and my best friend, Alison Baker. She was the reason I was back. I put the photo down knowing Sherlock would be back soon and walked out of the bedroom and sat in the lounge room, waiting

'That was ridiculous, that was the most ridiculous thing I've ever done' John said from down the stairs as he caught his breath.

'And you invaded Afghanistan' Sherlock commented and they both laughed. I smiled, I haven't heard Sherlock's laugh in a long time.

'That wasn't just me, why aren't we back at the restaurant?' John asked

'They can keep an eye out, it was a long shot anyways' Sherlock replied still catching his breath as well.

'So what were we doing there?' John asked

'Oh just passing the time and proving a point' Sherlock replied

'What point?' John asked

'You' Sherlock replied

'Mrs Hudson, Dr. Watson will take the room upstairs' Sherlock called out

'Says who' John asked

'Say's the person in our room' Sherlock answered as they walked up stairs to reveal me sitting in their lounge chair with John's walking cane.

Suddenly there was a knock on the front door, followed by some voices and then Mrs Hudson

'Sherlock, what have you done?" She shouted upset as we looked to the door to find Lestrade and some police officers walking up stairs and start to search the apartment.

'What are you doing?' Sherlock asked angry

'I knew you'd find the case, I'm not stupid' Lestrade answered with a smirk on his face

'You can't just search my flat' Sherlock said

'You can't withhold evidence and I'm not just searching your flat' Lestrade answered

'Well what do you call this?' Sherlock shouted

'It's a drugs bust' Lestrade answered. I rolled my eyes.

'Seriously – this guy – a junkie' John said with amusement in his voice. My eyes connected with Sherlock's.

'John' I stated and shook my head, he looked at me confused and then with wide eyes

'No . . .' He stated

'Shut up! I'm not your sniffer dog' Sherlock shouted at Lestrade

'No, Anderson's my sniffer dog' Lestrade commented as Anderson walked through the door. I glared at him as he looked me up and down again

'Anderson, what are you doing here on a drugs bust?' Sherlock asked

'Oh I volunteered' Anderson sneered back

'They all did' Lestrade commented

'Are these human eyes?' Donavan asked

'Put those back' Sherlock replied

'But they were in the microwave' Donavan said with disgust

'It's an experiment' Sherlock answered

'Keep looking guys, or you could start helping us properly and I'll stand them down' Lestrade told Sherlock

'This is childish' Sherlock muttered angrily

'Well he is dealing with a child' I answered

'Shut up Tage' Sherlock snapped at me. The whole room went silent, Sherlock Holmes as never once snapped at me. My eyes connected with his and I saw regret. I didn't care. I turned on my heels and walked down stairs

'Tage!' Sherlock called out as he ran after me. He soon caught me and trapped me against a wall

'Tage I apologise, please, you left without warning and now you're back with no explanation' Sherlock said as his eyes searched mine. My jaw tightened, I pushed him off me.

'Maybe because you have yet to ask me the question Sherlock, you have just assumed I would tell you' I said softly before walking out the door and down the street not noticing the taxi pull up in front of Sherlock.


	5. Chapter 5

...

I walked through the streets of London, pissed off. How dare Sherlock assume I'll tell him anything, I was protecting him, that's why I left, I was protecting him!

My phone started to ring

'What' I said angrily into my phone. It was Lestrade, he quickly explained that Sherlock had been with the murdered and almost killed himself.

'Where is he?' I asked, all anger gone.

'Ok, I'll be there' I said hanging up, I called down the next Taxi and got in

'Roland-Kerr Further Collage please' I said to the driver. I sat in the car thinking, if I hadn't left, Sherlock wouldn't have gotten in the taxi, and surely he knew it was the taxi driver who was the murderer.

We soon stopped outside and it was covered with police officers and ambulances. I got out the taxi and paid the driver quickly. I walked over to taped off area, ignoring the protests from the police officer on guard I ducked underneath the tape and walked over to the ambulance that Sherlock and Lestrade were at.

'Sherlock!' I shouted and he stood up and gave me a quick hug, I kissed his cheek and hugged him tightly.

'You idiot' I muttered which caused him to laugh.

We walked over to John who was waiting outside the taped area.

'Sergeant Donovan's just been explaining the two pill thing, dreadful businesses isn't it?' He asked John who was looking at him knowingly

'Good shot' Sherlock said

'Yes, yes must have been through that window' John answered and I smiled knowing that he must have been the one that shot the murderer

'Well, _you'd _know, need to get the powder burns out of your fingers. I don't suppose you'd serve time for this but let's avoid the court case' Sherlock said

'Are you alright?' He asked and I looked up at him, he never asks if people are alright

'Yes, of course I'm alright' John answered

'Well you have just killed a man' Sherlock said quickly

'Yes, I . . .' and then paused and I smiled

'That's true, isn't it' John stated with a smile on his face

'But he wasn't a very nice man' John reasoned

'No, no he wasn't really, was he?" Sherlock replied

'Frankly, a bloody awful cabbie' I muttered and we all started laughing

'That's true he was a bad cabbie, you have seen the route he took us to get here' Sherlock said as we started to walk off laughing

' Stop! We can't giggles it's a crime scene, stop it' John said joking

'Well you're the one who shot him down' Sherlock reasoned

'Keep your voice down' John hushed

'Sorry, it's just um . . . nerves, I think' Sherlock told a random person we walked past.

'You were going to take that damn pill, weren't you?' John asked

'Of course I wasn't, biding my time, knew you'd turn up' Sherlock replied unconvincingly

'No you didn't I said softly

'That's how you get your kicks isn't it? You risk your life to prove your clever' John told him

'Why would I do that?" Sherlock asked

'Because you're an idiot' I said, Sherlock smiled

'Dinner?' He asked, changing the subject

'Starving' John answered

'End of Baker Street, there's a good Chinese shop, stays open til two. You can tell a good Chinese by the bottom third of the door handle' Sherlock stated

'Sherlock, that's him . . . the man I was telling you about' John said in a hurried voice as we walked over to man who just got out of a car.

'I know exactly who you're talking about' Sherlock said as we walked over. I smiled at him

'So . . . another case cracked by Sherlock and Tage, Welcome Back Tage' He said to me. I nodded to him

'What are you doing here?' Sherlock asked

'As ever, I'm concerned about you' He replied

'Yes, I've been hearing about your 'concern'' Sherlock replied

'Always so aggressive, did it never occur to you that you and I belong on the same side?' He replied

'Oddly enough . . . no' Sherlock retorted

'We have more in common than you like to believe, this petty feud between us is simply childish, people will suffer and you know how it upsets mummy' He replied and I rolled my eyes

'I upset her? Me? It wasn't me that upset her, Mycroft' Sherlock stated back bitterly

'Wait, Mummy? Who's Mummy?' John asked confused

'Mother, their Mother' I explained

'This is my brother, Mycroft, putting weight on again?' Sherlock retorted

'Losing it, in fact' Mycroft said back smiling

'He's your Brother?' John asked

'Of course he's my brother' Sherlock said back, his eyes never leaving Mycroft

'So he's not . . .' John started to say

'not what?' Sherlock asked confused

'I don't know, criminal mastermind' John replied dumbly

'Close enough' Sherlock replied

'For goodness sake, I occupy a minor position in the British government' Mycroft said

'He is the British Government when he's not too busy being the British secret service or the CIA on a freelance basis' I stated

'Good evening Mycroft, try not to start a war before I get home – you know what it does for the traffic' Sherlock said before he and I walked off

'So dim sim' I told Sherlock as John caught up to us.

'Mmm, I can always predict the fortune cookies' Sherlock said

'No you can't' I said earning a laugh from John

'Almost can' Sherlock corrected

'You did get shot though' Sherlock told John

'Sorry?' John asked confused

'in Afghanistan, there was an actual wound' Sherlock explained

'Oh yeah, the shoulder' John said

'Shoulder, I thought so' Sherlock said

'No you didn't' I said with a smile

'The Left one' Sherlock stated

'Lucky guess' John told him

'I never guess' Sherlock said sounding wise

'Yes you do' I said laughing silently again

'What are you so happy about?' John asked

'Moriarty' Sherlock replied, I paled, and hopefully Sherlock didn't notice

'What's Moriarty?" John asked

'I've absolutely no idea' Sherlock replied and I sighed in relief. Sherlock looked over at me but I pretended not to notice.

...


	6. Chapter 6

A few months had past and I was now living with Sherlock and John in their spare bedroom. I was currently listening to Sherlock fight with some guy in the lounge room as I lay in bed. I sighed loudly as I heard the loud bangs from down stairs. It finally went quiet down stairs and I assumed Sherlock had won. I got up out of bed and walked down stairs in my boxers and loose t-shirt and of course my jacket. I found Sherlock sitting calming in the lounge room

'Morning' I state and he nodded in response.

'You are not going to ask the question are you?' I asked and he looked up at me in confusion

'About why I left' I explain and Sherlock frowned and went back to reading.

'I did it to save you, you idiot' I muttered quietly as I stood up and walked into the kitchen.

I turned around and found Sherlock standing only inches from me.

'Yes' I asked bored.

'What did you mean 'I did it to save you''He asked and I rolled my eyes

'It doesn't matter Sherlock' I stated going to turn around again but Sherlock lightly grabbed me by the shoulders and forced me to face him. I stiffened at the touch and he quickly let go off me and stepped back.

'Why do you always wear a jacket now-a-days Tage' He asked, I sighed and closed my eyes.

'Don't do this Sherlock' I whispered, he stepped forward again

'You're more quiet than usual, I mean you were always quiet around others but you're even quiet around me too' He whispered, stepping closer

'Sherlock' I whispered again

'You don't laugh anymore, well, you do but you don't make noise. I use to like your laugh Tage' He commented again.

'Sherlock' I said more firmly this time.

'Normally, I observe all these things one other people and know the reason why. But with you, it's blank. I have nothing' Sherlock said stepping back frowning

'It infuriating' He said angrily.

'What happened to you?" He cried out and I turned around so my back was too him.

'Why did you come back?' He asked softly

'Alison Baker' I said but before he could ask any more questions, John came in

'I didn't get the shopping' John called out interrupting our little conversation which I was thrilled about

'What, why not?' Sherlock asked, giving me a clear look that meant this conversation wasn't over. I rolled my eyes at him.

'Because I had a row with a chip and PIN machine' John explained angrily

'You have a row with a machine?' I asked amused

'Sort of, it sat there and I shouted abuse at it, have you got cash?' John asked both Sherlock and I. I shook my head

'Take my card' Sherlock said

'You could always go yourself, you know, you've been sitting there all morning, you've not even moved since I left' John said annoyed. I looked over at Sherlock, whose eyes connected with mine and we shared a knowing smile

'And what happened about that case you were offered – the Jaria diamond?' John asked

'Not interested' Sherlock said, I nodded towards the sword at his feet which he quickly hid.

'I sent them a message' He explained

John got the wallet and left quickly. I quietly started to make my way up stairs trying not to gain Sherlock's attention when suddenly Sherlock grabbed my shoulder and turned me to face him. Once again I stiffened and he withdrew his hand.

'Hi' I said smiling sweetly but Sherlock wasn't smiling at me. He was staring at me with searching eyes. So I thought of the only thing that would distract him, it was a cheap shot but I was desperate

'So what is Moriarty?' I asked weakly and Sherlock walked into the other room and started passing

'A person, a 'fan' of mine' Sherlock answered

'So you know nothing else?" I asked, feeling guilty because I knew more about the man then Sherlock did

'No and it is infuriating' Sherlock cried out and then sunk into the lounge chair.

'Maybe it is a good thing Sherlock' I said trying to cheer him up.

'When is not knowing things better then knowing things Tage?' He asked stressed and I sighed

'Trust me Sherlock, there are some things that are better left unknown' I whispered before turning to walk off, I felt a hand on my wrist. I flinched and turned back around

'Yes' I asked as Sherlock narrowed his eyes when I flinched

'You are ok aren't you Tage?' He asked concern in his eyes. I smiled weakly and kissed his cheek

'Of course Sherlock' I whispered before walked back up the stairs and into my room.

Time passed by and then I heard John returning so I made my way down stairs again to find Sherlock in the same place I left him except he had a lap top in front of him

'Don't worry about me, I can manage' John said in a strained voice. I smiled and walked over taking some of his bags.

'Is that my computer?' John asked

'Of course' Sherlock replied as if it was obvious

'What?' John asked

'Mine was in the bedroom and Tage wouldn't reply when I shout for her' He replied and I just shrugged

'What? And you couldn't be bothered getting up? Its password protected' John said angrily

'In a manner of speaking, took me less than a minute to guess yours, not exactly Fort Knox' Sherlock stated, his eyes never leaving the screen

'Right, Thank you' John said pissed off as he went and grabbed the laptop off him.

'Need to get a job' John sighed after reading a few letters

'Dull' Sherlock replied and I rolled my eyes at him.

'I need to go to the bank' Sherlock stated getting up and then look at me.

'Get dress Tage' He ordered and I raised my eyebrows at him. He looked at me and his eyes softened which was his ways of saying please. I sighed and quickly got up stairs and changed into black jeans and a red t-shirt. I put my jacket back on and walked back down stairs. Sherlock nodded at me and we took off with John behind us.

...


	7. Chapter 7

...

We soon arrived at a large, modern building with glass walls.

'Yes, when you said we were going to the bank . . .' John started to say as he looked around the building which was clearly not our usual bank.

'Sherlock Holmes' He said as we arrived at the front desk or one of them anyways. We were soon directed to a large boss's office and I read the sign on the door.

'This is a case' I stated

'Sherlock Holmes and Tage West' a man walked in wearing a bright blue suit and clean-cut hair style.

'Sebastian' Sherlock said shaking his hand while I settled on a nod

'Hi-ya Buddies, how long's it been – eight years since I last clapped eyes on you two?' Sebastian asked

'This is my friend, John Watson' Sherlock introduced

'Friend? I thought Tage was your only friend' Sebastian asked

'Colleague' John corrected, in fact they were friends but it is so much simpler if they just said colleague

'Do you need anything, coffee, tea, water?' Sebastian asked as we all took seats around his desk

'No, we're all sorted here thanks' He said to one of his employees

'So you're doing well, you've been abroad a lot, flying around the world twice in a month' Sherlock commented as I smirked

'Right, you're doing that thing, we were at uni together, and this guy here had a trick he used to do' Sebastian explained to John

'It's not a trick' Sherlock muttered

'He could look at you and tell you your whole life story' Sebastian continued as if Sherlock hadn't said anything

'Yes, I've seen him do it' John agreed

'Put the wind up everybody, we hated it. We'd come down to breakfast in the formal hall and this freak would know you'd been shagging the previous night' Sebastian explained. I clenched my fist at the word 'freak'

'I simply observed' Sherlock explained uncaring

'Go on, enlighten me, two trips around the world in a month, you're quite right, how could you tell? Are you going to tell me there's a stain on my tie from some special kind of ketchup you can only buy in Manhattan? Is it the mud on my shoes?' Sebastian said sarcastically

'I was just chatting with your secretary outside. She told me.' Sherlock stated and I had to cough to cover my laugh.

'Why are we here?' I asked softly

'I'm glad you could make it over, we've had a break-in. Sir-William's office – the bank's former chairman, the room's been left here like a sort of memorial. Someone broke in late last night' Sebastian explained as we walked through the building

'What did they steal?' John asked

'Nothing, just left a little message' He said as he let us into the room. I looked up at the wall and saw 2 yellow symbols no doubt Chinese of some sort.

'Camera's' I stated and Sebastian nodded as we walked over to another room with the computer screens

'60 seconds apart' Sebastian explained as he played the surveillance footage.

'So someone came up here, in the middle of the night, splashed a bit of paint around and left within a minute' Sebastian said

'How many ways into that office?' Sherlock asked

'Well, that's where this gets really interesting' Sebastian stated as we walked back out of the office and to the front desk again.

'Every door that opens in this bank, it gets locked right here, every walk-in cupboard, every toilet' Sebastian explained

'That door didn't open last night?' Sherlock asked

'There's a hole in our security, find it and we will pay you 5 figures, this is an advance, tell me how he got in, there's a bigger one on its way' Sebastian said to Sherlock pulling out a check. I walked off not caring about the check; I knew John would take it for Sherlock. I walked back into the office and looked at the message again.

Sherlock walked in soon after me and started taking photos of the message. As he was doing that I looked around the room and finally I walked out onto the rim of the building. I looked from side to side curiously and then down. We were very high up.

'Tage, do come inside, can't have you falling off' Sherlock called out and I smiled but walked back inside, Sherlock was already in the other room weaving and duck in between desks. I simply shook my head at him and lent up against the wall near John and Sebastian.

'He really does look like an idiot sometimes' I muttered to myself

'Two trips around the world in a month' John commented to me and I raised my eyes brows to him in confusion

'He didn't ask his secretary, he just said that to irritate him, how did he know?' John asked me

'Did you see his watch?' I replied

'His watch' John asked

'The time is right but the date was wrong, said two days ago, crossed the date line twice and didn't alter it' I explained

'Within a month? How did he get that?' John asked

'New Breitling, only came out this February' Sherlock answered as we started to walk out of the building

'Ok, do you think we should sniff around here a bit longer?" John asked

'Got everything I need to know, thanks' Sherlock replied

'That graffiti was a message, someone at the bank, working on the trade floors, we find the intended recipient and . . . 'I explained pausing for John to catch up with our train of thought

'They'll lead us to the person who sent it?" John asked

'Obvious' Sherlock stated

'Well, there are 300 people up there, who was it meant for?' John asked

'Pillars' Sherlock said

'What?' John asked looking at Sherlock then realised he wasn't going to answer so I replied

'Pillars and the screens, there are very few places you could see that graffiti from, that narrows the field down considerably' I explained and John nodded

'And of course the message was left at 11.45 last night that tells us alot' Sherlock continued

'Does it?' John asked

'Traders come to work at all hours; some trade with Hong Kong in the middle of the night, that message was intended for somebody who came in at midnight. Not many Van Coons in the phone book' Sherlock said as he showed John the desk name he stole before calling down a taxi.

...


	8. Chapter 8

...

We soon arrived at Van Coons apartment; Sherlock pressed the buzzer but no reply, he looked confused and tried again

'Sherlock, stop, if Van Coon is at the office at midnight I doubt he would be awake right now' I explained

'So what do we do now? Sit here and wait for him to come back?' John suggested

'Just moved in' Sherlock stated

'What?' John asked

'Floor above, new label' Sherlock said

'Could have replaced it' John suggested

'No-one ever does that' Sherlock said

'Let me do it, I sound more human' I said pushing Sherlock aside carefully

'Barely' He muttered and I smiled cheekily at him as I pressed the buzzer for the up stairs

'_Hello?'_ The women asked

'Hi, um, I live in the flat just below you, I don't think we've met' I said in a very girly, out-going voice. John stared at me in surprised but Sherlock's face never changed.

'_No, well, er, I've just moved in_' the women explained

'Oh, well welcome to the building, now look this is a little embarrassing but I've left my keys in my flat . . .' I said before trailing off at the end and sniffing as if I was upset

'_Oh, dear, do you want me to buzz you in?_' She asked and I smiled at the boys

'Um, yes please, if it isn't too much trouble and is it too much to ask if I could use your balcony so I can get into my flat from the window.' I asked

'_Oh, um, of course not' _The women replied as she buzzed us in. I smiled and motioned for Sherlock to lead. He glared at me before walking into the building.

We walked inside and up to the women's flat only to hear her shout that she was in the bathroom and for us to use the balcony.

I went first and jumped with ease onto the balcony below us. Sherlock soon followed

We quickly went to work looking around the compartment, ignoring John's calls to let him into the building. I started to open the doors until I came to one that was locked. I looked at Sherlock before kicking down the door. There inside was Van Coon, dead. I single bullet shot to his head.

...


	9. Chapter 9

...

'Do you think he lost alot of money?' John asked as the police were arriving as well as the crime scene guys

'Suicide is pretty common among city boys' John stated

'We don't know it was suicide' Sherlock stated

'Come on, the door was locked from the inside, you had to climb down the balcony' John described

'Been away three days judging by the laundry' I said standing behind Sherlock as he knelt in front of it

'Look at the case, there was something tightly packed inside it' Sherlock said standing up

'Thanks, I'll take your word for it' John said

'Problem?' Sherlock asked confused and I rolled my eyes

'Yeah, I'm not desperate to root around some bloke's dirty underwear' John answered

'Those symbols at the bank, the graffiti, why were they put there?' Sherlock asked

'Some sort of code' John said

'Obviously, why were they painted, want to communicate, why not use e-mail?' Sherlock asked

'Maybe he wasn't answering' John suggested

'Oh good, you follow' Sherlock said happily

'Nope' John said and Sherlock sighed and looked over at me to explain.

'What kind of message would everyone try to avoid? What about this morning, those letters you were looking at?' I asked

'Bills?' John asked confused

'Yes, he was being threatened' Sherlock said getting sick of the guessing game. He pulled out a origami black flower from down Van Coon's throat.

'Not by the gas board' John commented

Suddenly a man walked into the room

'Sergeant, we haven't met' Sherlock said walking over to him

'Yeah, I know who you are and I would prefer if you didn't tamper with any of the evidence' Dimmock stated angrily.

'I phone Lestrade, is he on his way?' Sherlock asked handing Dimmock the black flower that was in his throat.

'He's busy, I'm in charge' Dimmock replied and I rolled my eyes, great.

'And it's not Sergeant, its Detective Inspector Dimmock' Dimmock introduced and Sherlock looked back at me with wide eyes and I just smiled

'We are obviously looking at a suicide' Dimmock stated as we walked out of the bedroom

'It does seem the only explanation of all the facts' John concluded

'Wrong, its one possible explanation of some of the facts' Sherlock stated

'You've got a solution that you like, but you are choosing to ignore anything you see that doesn't comply with it' Sherlock continued angrily

'Like' Dimmock asked

'The wound's on the right side of his head. Van Coon was left-handed, requires a bit of contortion' Sherlock said demonstrating

'Left-handed' Dimmock stated in disbelief

'I'm amazed you didn't notice, all you have to do is look around this flat, coffee table on the left hand side, coffee mug handle pointing to the left, power sockets, habitually used the ones on his left, pen and paper on the left of the phone, picked up with his right, took messages with his left. Do you want me to go on?' Sherlock asked

'No I think you covered it' I muttered sarcastically

'I might as well, I'm almost at the bottom of the list. There's a knife on the breadboard with butter on the right side of the blade because he used it with his left hand. It's highly unlikely that a left-handed man would shoot himself in the right side of the head, conclusion someone broke in here and murdered him –only explanation of all the facts' Sherlock talk Dimmock angrily

'But the gun?' Dimmock asked

'He was waiting for the killer, he'd been threatened' I answered for him

'What?' Dimmock asked

'Today at the bank, sort of a warning' John explained as Sherlock walked over to me

'You enjoyed that way too much' I muttered to him and he smiled

'He fired a shot when his attacker came in' Sherlock stated

'And the bullet?' Dimmock asked

'Went through the open window' Sherlock explained

'Oh Come on! What are the chances of that?' Dimmock scoffed in disbelief

'Wait until you get the ballistics report, the bullet in his brain wasn't fired from his gun. I guarantee it' Sherlock said

'But if the door was locked from the inside, how did the killer get in?' Dimmock asked

'Good, you're finally asking the right questions' Sherlock said before walking out the door, John and I hot on his trail


	10. Chapter 10

'Do I have to be here Sherlock?' I asked as we got out of the taxi, Sherlock looked confused and slightly hurt

'Do you have somewhere else to be?'

'Well, no, I just don't like Sebastian' I muttered softly and John smiled while Sherlock smirked

'Come on Tage' He said placing a hand on my back and lightly pushing me into the restaurant.

'He's left trying to sort of cut his hair with a fork, which of course can never be done' Sebastian said laughing with his friends as we walked over to him

'It was a threat, that's what the graffiti meant' Sherlock stated as we got closer

'I'm kind of in a meeting; can you make an appointment with my secretary?' Sebastian said with a annoyed smile on his face

'I don't think this can wait, sorry, Sebastian' Sherlock stated softly and Sebastian scoffed annoyed. I sighed and stepped forward

'One of your traders, someone who worked in your office, was killed' I explained angrily

'What?' He asked

'Van Coon, the police are at his flat' John stated

'Killed?' Sebastian stated shocked

'Sorry to interfere with everyone's digestion, still want to make an appointment?' Sherlock asked

'Would maybe 9 o'clock Scotland's Yard suit?' I asked as Sherlock placed a light hand on my shoulder

'Wait outside Tage' He ordered and I glared at him but walked out the front nonetheless.

I waited outside while the cars drove past. I sighed and looked around. My phone started to ring and I looked down to see it was unknown caller

'Hello' I answered

'Hello Tage' the man on the other end said

'Who is this?' I asked

'You know who it is' He answered before hanging up.

I rolled my eyes and watched as Sherlock walked out clearly annoyed.

'Have fun?' I asked with an amused tone.

We hailed down a taxi and soon got back to the apartment. John quickly went to bed which left Sherlock and I in the lounge room.

'I looked up Alison' Sherlock stated quietly and I sighed and stood up to leave but Sherlock grabbed my hand lightly and pulled me back down next to him.

'I am sorry about her death Tage' He whispered and I closed my eyes, I so did not want to talk about this right now

'How did it happen?' Sherlock asked

'You know how Sherlock, don't pretend you haven't looked at her case files already' I snapped back and then sighed softly. I noticed Sherlock was still holding my hand and I smiled. It reminded me off the old days

'Do you know who did it?" Sherlock asked and I shook my head

'I have my ideas though but it isn't important, she is gone' I said back and Sherlock's eyes connected with mine.

'Tage . . . please, you never use to hide anything from me before so why are you hiding things now?' He whispered almost in a pained voice.

'Things change Sherlock' I whispered and gave him a small smile and kissed his cheek lightly before standing up and letting go off Sherlock's hand.

'I don't want us to change Tage, you were my best friend, I may not have ever told you that but I knew that you knew it' Sherlock said, showing one of his rare moments to me where he was vulnerable.

'I will always be your best friend Sherlock as you will always be mine' I said with a smile

'Us freaks stick together to the end' I winked and left him to his thoughts as I went up to my room. I took of my jacket and stared at my scarred body in the mirror.

'I should tell him the truth' I muttered to myself but my thoughts were interrupted by my phone getting a text

**Good Night –SH **

I smiled and laughed silently to myself. I was always the only person Sherlock showed emotions too.

I walked down stairs a in the early mornings, unable to sleep, to find Sherlock staring into space; I could almost see the symbols flashing in front of his face.

'Tea Sherlock' I asked and he didn't answer but I knew if I didn't make him one he would glare at me. I made him a tea and took it over to him, placing it in his out stretched hand.

I remember hearing John leave early this morning to go to a job interview I assume so I sat next to Sherlock on the couch and got out my laptop, researching Chinese symbols.

We sat like that for hours, in silence, until we heard John walking up the stairs

'I said, could you pass me a pen?' Sherlock said as John walked into the room

'What, When?' John asked

'About an hour ago' Sherlock stated and I smiled

'Why didn't you ask Tage?' John asked as he looked over to me sitting next to him with a smile on my face

'Didn't notice she was in the room, thought she was still asleep' Sherlock stated with a confused look on his face

'And I made him a cup of tea as well' I said laughing silently

'I thought John made that' Sherlock said with a frown.

'Didn't notice I'd gone out then?' John asked, throwing Sherlock a pen that caught it easily

'I went to see about a job at that surgery' John explained

'How was it?' I asked

'Great, she's great' John replied distractedly and I smiled

'Who?' Sherlock asked confused

'The job' John said

'You said she' I stated and John's face fell

'It' John clarified.

'Sherlock' I said and he turned around as I showed him the computer screen

'The intruder who can walk through walls' Sherlock read out

'It happened last night, Journalist shot dead in his flat, doors locked, windows bolted from the inside, exactly the same as Van Coon' I explained

'God, you think . . .' John started to say

'He's killed another one'


	11. Chapter 11

...

We arrived at Scotland's Yard a few hours later and Sherlock demanded we see Dimmock. We were quickly showed to his office.

'Brian Lukis, freelance journalist, murdered in his flat, doors locked from the inside' Sherlock stated showing Dimmock the internet article

'You've got to admit, it's similar, both men killed by someone who can walk through solid walls' John continued

'Inspector, do you seriously believe that Eddie Von Coon was just another city suicide?' I added

'You have seen the ballistics repost, I suppose' Sherlock asked and Dimmock nodded

'And the shot that killed him, was it fired from his own gun?' Sherlock asked

'No' Dimmock said leaning back in his chair

'No, so this investigation might move a bit quicker if you were to take my word as gospel' Sherlock stated angrily. I stepped forward.

'Sherlock' I said softly

'I've just handed you a murder inquiry, five minutes in his flat' Sherlock said leaning down on the table ignoring me.

'Ok' Dimmock agreed reluctantly

'Will we go together?' Dimmock asked

'No, Tage and I will follow, John go with Dimmock and inform him about the bank break in' Sherlock ordered as he left the room grabbing my hand lightly and pulling me behind him.

We hailed down the closest taxi and got in. Sherlock gave him the address of the latest crime scene and we were off. I was staring out the window until I felt Sherlock's thumb rubbing circles on my hand since we were still holding hands. I smiled weakly at him

'You need to talk to me Tage' Sherlock stated

'No I don't' I muttered stubbornly

'It will eat you alive keeping it from me' Sherlock said slightly amused but more concerned

'Do you remember when I got into a fight with Alison and I was upset for weeks and you couldn't figure out why I was upset?' I asked laughing silently and Sherlock joined in

'Yes, it was the first thing I could never figure out about you, it was most infuriating' Sherlock said while smiling

'First of many to come' I said smiling

'That it was Tage, but do you remember when you first started working with me at crime scenes and you got nightmares, you were scared to tell me but keeping to yourself almost killed you, you stopped eating, sleeping' Sherlock asked suddenly sober

'Yes, I do remember that, I thought you would care that I was weak' I muttered and felt Sherlock's thumb rubbing my hand again

'I never thought you were weak Tage, and I wouldn't care if you were' He whispered and I smiled weakly

'Do you remember how much better you felt after you told me what was going on?' Sherlock asked and I frowned

'It's not the same' I muttered and then taxi stopped. Sherlock paid the taxi driver and we got out of the taxi and started walking to the crime scene, Dimmock and John arriving shortly after.

We all walked up the stairs which was taped off, into the apartment. His apartment was messy, very messy. Sherlock and I looked around the place with interest. Sherlock looked over at the window and smiled

'Four floors up, that is why they think they're safe, put a chain across the door, bolt it shut, think they're impregnable. They don't think for one second that there's another way in.' Sherlock said looking around the place

'I don't understand' Dimmock said confused

'Dealing with a killer who can climb' I explained as Sherlock started walking towards something.

'What are you doing?' Dimmock asked

'Clings to the walls like an insect' Sherlock continued to explain as he stood on some furniture to open a skylight

'That's how he got in' Sherlock whispered to himself

'What?' Dimmock asked

'He climbed up the side of the walls, ran along the roof, dropped in through the skylight' Sherlock explained

'You're not serious? Like spider-man?' Dimmock asked in disbelief

'He scaled six floors of a Docklands apartment building, jumped a balcony and killed Van Coon' Sherlock shouted at Dimmock

'Oh, hold on' Dimmock said laughing at him

'That's how he got into the bank – ran along the window ledge onto the terrace' I explained

'I have to find out what connects these two men' Sherlock told me and John, breathing heavily.

Sherlock picked up a book that was from the library and took off. I sighed and got in the taxi with him and John.

The ride was a silent one as we arrived at the library; Sherlock took off up the stairs with John as I leisurely took my time.

'Date stamped on the book is the same day that he died' Sherlock said distractedly as I started to pull out books from shelves. That's when I saw it.

The same yellow paint

'Sherlock' I shouted as I pulled out the rest of the books to reveal the same symbols that were at the bank.


	12. Chapter 12

...

'So the killer goes to the bank leaves a threatening cipher, Van Coon panics, returns to his apartment, locks himself in, hours later, he dies.' Sherlock stated out loud

'The killer finds Lukis at the library, he writes the cipher on the shelf, where he knows it'll be seen, Lukis goes home, later that night, he dies too' I continued

'Why did they die, Sherlock?' John asked

'Only the cipher can tell us' Sherlock stated as he bolted out the door with John and I closely behind him

'The world's run on codes and ciphers, John' Sherlock explained

'From the million pound security system at the bank to the PIN machine you took exception too. Cryptography inhabits our every waking moment' Sherlock explained

'Yes, ok, but' John said before getting cut off

'But it's all computer generated – electronic codes, electronic ciphering methods, this is different. It's an ancient device, modern-code breaking methods won't unravel it' Sherlock stated

'Where we heading?' John asked

'He needs to ask some advice' I stated since Sherlock Holmes would never admit he needs help

'What! Sorry?' John asked shocked and amused

'You heard her perfectly, she will not say it again' Sherlock replied as I opened my mouth to say it again he put one gloved hand over my mouth and I grinned at him.

'You need advice?' John asked still shocked

'On painting, yes I need to talk to an expert' Sherlock stated as we walked around the side of the museum which confused John. We walked up to male teenager

'Part of a new expedition' the young male spoke

'Interesting . . .' Sherlock stated pulling out some photos from his pocket

'I call it Urban Blood Frenzy' the teenager said laughing

'Catchy' John said sarcastically

'I've got two minutes before a Community Support Officer comes around that corner. Can we do this while I'm working?' He asked his eyes still not leaving the wall.

'Take a look at these' Sherlock said as he held out a phone to the teenager. He turned around and threw the spray can at John who caught it. His eyes then landed on me.

'Why Hello there' He said smiling and I rolled my eyes at him

'Know the Author' Sherlock said firmly

'I recognise the paint, it's like Michigan, hard-core propellant, I'd say Zinc' He said to Sherlock, his eyes still looking over at me every often

'And what about the symbols? Do you recognise them?' Sherlock asked

'I'm not even sure it's a proper language' the teenager spoke jokingly

'Two men have been murdered, Raz, deciphering this is the key to finding out who killed them' Sherlock said firmly

'And this is all you've got to go on?' Raz asked amused

'It's hardly much, is it?' Raz asked

'Are you going to help us or not?' Sherlock asked and Raz looked over at me again and smiled

'I'll ask around' Raz said

'Somebody must know something about it' Sherlock said his voice slightly raised

'Oi' a security guard called out as he walked around the corner. Sherlock grabbed my hand and bolted off with Raz following, John however wasn't so fast.

Sherlock and I bolted through the streets of London and stopped a few blocks down, panting heavily.

'Should we go back for John?' I asked in between pants

'No, he can look after himself' Sherlock said before taking my hand once more and hailing down a taxi.

We soon arrived back at Baker Street and I sat in the lounge room watching patiently while Sherlock looks over at his notes on the wall.

I started to doze off on the couch and was woken a few hours later by the door slamming open. I sat up straight and noticed I now had a blanket over me. I smiled softly as I made eye contact with Sherlock who was silently pleased I was happy about the blanket.

'You've been a while' Sherlock stated as he turned back to the wall of notes

'Yeah, well, you know how it is. Custody Sergeants don't really like to be hurried, do they?' John asked clearly pissed off

'Just formalities, fingerprints, charge sheet, and I've got to be in magistrate's court on Tuesday' John explained

'What?' Sherlock asked distractedly

'Me! Sherlock, In Court, on Tuesday, they are giving me an ASBO' John shouted

'Good, fine' Sherlock said still distractedly

'You want to tell your little pal he's welcome to go and own up any time' John said angrily

'This symbol, I still can't place it' Sherlock said angrily. John just started to take of his jacket when Sherlock shoved it back on him

'No, I want you to go to the police station and ask about the journalist. The personal effects will have been impounded, get hold of his diary or something that will tell us his movements' Sherlock said as he pushed John out the door while grabbing his coat

'Are you coming Tage?' Sherlock asked and I nodded while following him out the door.

'Go and see Van Coon's PA, if you retrace their steps somewhere they'll coincide' Sherlock said and he put his gloves on and grabbed hold of my hand and pulled me with him.


	13. Chapter 13

...

'Flew back from Dalian Friday' one of the ladies from Van Coon's work explained

'Looks like he had back-to-back meetings with the sales team' she continued as I stood next to Sherlock and watched the computer screen

'Can you print me up a copy?' Sherlock asked his hands behind his back

'Sure' she said kindly

'What about the day he died, can you tell me where he was?' Sherlock asked

'Sorry, I've got a gap' She stated

'I have all his receipts' she added after seeing Sherlock's face

'What kind of boss was he Amanda?' I asked as she got all his receipts for Sherlock to look through

'Appreciative' I asked

'Um, no, not a word I'd use, the only thing Eddie appreciated had a big price tag' She said nervously

'Like that hand cream, he bought that for you, didn't he?' I asked softly but she didn't answer she just looked at me surprised

'Look at this one' Sherlock said giving it to Amanda

'Got a taxi from him on the day he died, $18.50' He stated

'That would get him to the office' Amanda stated uncertainly

'Not rush hour, check the time, mid-morning, 18 would get him as far as . . . 'Sherlock started to say but was cut off

'The west end, I remember him saying' she started proud that she could help. I stepped forward leaning over Sherlock's shoulder to read the receipts as well. Sherlock paused slightly as I first leaned over, his eyes darting to me and then went back to work.

'Underground, printed at one in Piccadilly' I stated picking up a receipt

'So he got a tube back to the office, why would he get a taxi into town and then a tube back' Amanda asked confused

'Because he was delivering something heavy' I explained

'You wouldn't lug a package up the escalator' Sherlock continued

'Delivering?' Amanda asked confused

'To somewhere near Piccadilly station, dropped the package, delivered it and then . . . 'Sherlock said more to himself then Amanda and I

'Stopped to get some food' I continued as I picked up a receipt to a Pizza place and took off with Sherlock close behind me. We caught a taxi to the Pizza place.

'So you bought your lunch from here en route to the station but where were you heading from?' Sherlock asked himself as we walked around the street

'Where did the taxi drop you?' He continued and soon we ran into John who had the Journalist's diary

'Eddie Van Coon brought a package here the day he died, whatever was hidden inside that case, I've manage to piece together a picture using scraps of information – credit card bills, receipts. He flew back from China, then he came here' Sherlock said to John in a rushed voice

'Sherlock' John said but Sherlock didn't stop his fast pass talking

'Somewhere in this street, somewhere near. I don't know where' Sherlock said frustrated

'That shop, over there' John stated confidently

'How could you tell?' Sherlock asked surprised

'Lukis's diary, he was here too, he wrote down the address' John explained before walking off

'Oh' Sherlock said frowning; I smiled and laughed silently to myself

I followed the boys into the shop

'Hello' Sherlock said

'You want lucky cat?' A lady behind the counter asked

'No, thanks, no' John said

'$10 $10' She continued

'I think your wife, she will like' the lady was persistent I'll give her that much

'Maybe' John said

I walked around the shop, looking at various items and I picked one up and looked at it, underneath it was Chinese writing, the same as the cipher

'Sherlock' I said gaining his attention as I walked over to him

'The label there' I stated

'Yes, I see it' Sherlock said softly

'It's exactly the same as the cipher' I said softly

We stood there in silent for a moment before I hit myself in the head

'Of course' I said loudly earning a shocked looked from Sherlock and John

'Come on' I stated as we walked out of the shop

'It's an ancient number system – Hang Zhou, these days only street traders use it. Those numbers written on the wall at the bank and at the library, numbers written in an ancient Chinese dialect' I explained as we walked down the street

'It's a 15, what we thought was the artist's tag, it's a 15' I explained remembering the numbers in my head

'You know the Hang Zhou numbering system off by heart?' John asked impressed and I just smiled at him

'And the blindfold, the horizontal line, what number was that?' Sherlock asked

'The Chinese number 1' I stated

'We found it' John said smiling

We soon found a little coffee shop in which we sat down and I grabbed a pen and paper from the lady behind the counter and wrote down the symbols and the letters

'Two men travel back from China, both head straight for the Lucky Cat emporium, what did they see?' John asked

'It's not what they saw; it's what they both brought back in those suitcases' Sherlock explained

'You don't mean duty free' John said

'Think about what Sebastian told us, about Van Coon, about how he stayed afloat in the market' Sherlock told John

'Lost 5 million' John stated

'Made it back in a week, that's how he made such easy money' I muttered

'He was a smuggler' John finally caught on

'Cover would have been perfect, businessman making frequent trips to Asia, Lukis was the same, a journalist writing about China, both of them smuggled stuff about' Sherlock spoke out loud too himself

'The Lucky Cat was their drop-off' I said

'But why did they die?' John asked confused

'It doesn't make sense, if they both turn up at the shop and deliver the goods, why would someone threaten them and kill them after the event, after they finished the job?' John asked

'What if one of them was light-fingered?' Sherlock said with a smirk

'What do you mean?' John asked as he ate his meal

'Stole something, something from the hoard' I explained

'The killer doesn't know which of them took it so he threatens them both' John said catching on

'Remind me, when was the last time it rained?' Sherlock asked confused as he stood up and walked out the shop and across the road with John on his heels. I sighed and finished off my drink before walking over to them

'It's been here since Monday' Sherlock muttered as he stood up and pressed the door bell, the name on it was Soo Lin Yao. While Sherlock tried to ring the door bell again I walked around the side of the building and out the back

'No one's been in that flat for at least three days' I heard Sherlock say as they followed me around the back

'Could have gone on holiday' John stated

'Do you leave your windows open when you go on holiday?' I asked as I ran and grabbed the back ladder. I pulled myself up and started to climb to the back window.

'Sherlock' I heard John call out I assume that he had followed me. I was right when he walked past me and climbed through the window. I heard him almost drop a vase but caught it at the last moment

'Somebody else has been here' Sherlock muttered as I climbed in after him

'Somebody else broke into the flat and knocked over the vase, just like I did' Sherlock said again as he started to look around the flat. I walked forward around as well. I went to the fridge and got out the milk to smell. I almost threw up after smelling the milk so I quickly put it back gagging

'We aren't the first' Sherlock said to me

'Somebody's been in here before us' I commented as well

'Size 8 feet, small but athletic' Sherlock comment while looking at the ground, I walked in front of Sherlock and looked around. Something wasn't right here.

'Sherlock' I whispered

'Small, strong hands, our acrobat, why didn't he close the window when he left' Sherlock continued to mutter to himself

'Because he didn't leave' I whispered pointing to the feet hidden behind the curtain, Sherlock of course didn't hear me once again and I walked closer to the hidden person only for him to surprise me and wrap a rope around my throat chocking me. I struggled against him while hearing Sherlock yell in surprise as he tried to pull the man off me. I could feel myself fading quickly when suddenly the pressure was gone and so was the man. I turned around to see Sherlock kneeling next to me with a bat in his hand. I was coughing so he pulled me close to him and rubbed my back

'I'm sorry Tage' He whispered

'Don't be, not your fault' I managed to croak out.

'Come on let's get out of here' Sherlock whispered to me as he helped me up. I walked out of the compartment with Sherlock to find John reading a note he had found in the door. It was from one of Soo Ling Yao's work mate who was worried about her and on it was where he worked.


	14. Chapter 14

...

'When was the last time that you saw her?' Sherlock asked Andy, one of Soo Ling's workmates

'Three days ago, here at the museum, this morning they told me she had resigned just like that, left her work unfinished' Andy told John as Sherlock and I looked around the museum

'What was the last thing she did on her final afternoon?' Sherlock asked and Andy took us to another room

'She does this demonstration for the tourists, a tea ceremony, so she would have packed up her things and just put them in here' Andy explained as he opened the door in another room. I looked around the room with interest as John and Sherlock started to head into the room

'Sherlock!' I shouted as they came out in a hurry, on one of the statues was the same yellow painted symbols. We quickly left the museum

'We have to get to Soo Ling Yao' Sherlock stated as they walked down the steps of the museum

'If she is still alive' John commented

'Sherlock' Raz called out and I rolled my eyes

'Oh, look who it is' John commented I gave him a small smile, my thoughts exactly

'Found something you'll like' He said after looking over at me and smiling.

And so we took off after Raz, we walked for a while until we came to a underground hideout of sorts, there were kids skating around and the place was covered in graffiti

'You want to hide a tree, then a forest is the best place to do it, wouldn't you say?' Sherlock asked

'People would just walk straight past, not knowing, unable to decipher the message' He continued

'There, I spotted it earlier' Raz explained as he pointed to some yellow paint on the wall

'They've been here, and that's the exact same paint?' Sherlock asked stressing the point that it had to be the same paint

'Yeah' Raz answered certainly

'John, Tage, if we're going to decipher this code, we need to look for more evidence' Sherlock explained and I took off by myself, in search.

I walked down some train lines and over to an abandoned train with my flash light. I walked for about 10 minutes before I found it. I smiled to myself before taking a photo of it with my phone and trying to call Sherlock and John, of course none of them picked up so I took off to find them

'I found it' I said to Sherlock and John who were looking elsewhere

'Why didn't you call' John asked confused

'I did' I muttered harshly before taking Sherlock by the hand and dragging him to the spot, when I flashed my light on the train though it was gone. I put my hand on the spot it had been and found it was wet paint

'Someone doesn't want us to see it' Sherlock whispered and then suddenly grabbed me by the shoulder, I stiffened but he didn't notice

'Do you remember what you saw?' Sherlock asked

'Take your hands off me, please' I whispered slightly scared and he was shocked at my tone but did so and then looked confused and upset at me

'I took photos of it Sherlock, have some faith' I said with a small smile and showed him my phone.

'Can you tell what numbers these are?' Sherlock asked and I nodded

'Let's get them printed off though and back to the flat' I suggested and he nodded

'John, take the phone and get them printed, we will meet you back at the flat' Sherlock said throwing him the phone and then lightly grabbing my hand and started walking in the direction of a main street so we could get a taxi.

'What's going on Tage?' Sherlock asked softly once we were in the taxi

'I don't know what you're talking about Sherlock' I said firmly and Sherlock laughed softly

'You never could lie to me Tage, you could hide things from me but you could never outright lie to me' He muttered and I smiled softly

'Yeah I know' I muttered back and we were both silent on the matter until the taxi driver stopped.

Sherlock paid the man and we went into our flat and waiting on the lounge for John to get back.

'I am worried about you Tage' Sherlock said finally breaking the silence and I sighed and grabbed his hand

'Don't be, I am fine now' I whispered and kissed his cheek before walking up to my room.


	15. Chapter 15

About an hour later I walked down stairs to find John was just arriving back and was pinning the photos up on the wall. I grabbed a pen off the table which I was surprised was so easy to find considering the table was a mess. I walked up to the photos and after a moment of working out the numbers I wrote them underneath there corresponding Chinese symbol.

'Always in pairs, look' Sherlock stated after studying the pictures for a while, I was now lying on the lounge staring at the roof while John was half asleep sitting at the table

'Numbers . . . come with partners' Sherlock spoke out loud

'I need sleep' John muttered

'Why did he paint it so near the tracks?' Sherlock asked though he didn't expect an answer

'No idea' John replied sleepily

'Thousands of people pass by there every day' Sherlock continued one sided conversation

'Just 20 minutes' John said softly still talking about sleep

'John go and get some sleep' I said softly

'Of course, of course he wants information he's trying to communicate with his people in the underworld, whatever was stolen, he wants it back. It's somewhere here, in a code' Sherlock said more to himself when suddenly he started to pull down the pictures

'We can't crack this without Soo Lin Yao' Sherlock said loudly showing he was now talking to us.

'Oh, good' John replied sleepily and sarcastically. I smiled at him as we got up and followed Sherlock out of the flat and into a taxi. The taxi ride was a silent one as Sherlock looked out the window, deep in thought, I looked up at the ceiling in thought and I was pretty sure John was asleep next to me.

The taxi soon stopped which woke John from his slumber and Sherlock from his thoughts; Sherlock paid the taxi driver and took off into the museum. John was by his side while I lingered back at bit and took my time.

When I caught up to them, they had located Andy again.

'Two men who travelled back from China were murdered and their killer left them messages in Hang Zhou numerals' Sherlock explained to Andy, his voice was harsh.

'Soo Lin Yao is in danger, that cipher, it was just the same pattern as the others, he means to kill her as well' John explained kindly but firmly

'Look I've tried everywhere – friends, colleagues. I don't know where she's gone; I mean she could be a thousand miles away' Andy said somewhat upset. I watched the men with interest and noticed Sherlock staring at something in one of the display cabinets. I walked over to it with interest

'What are you looking at?' Andy asked Sherlock and I

'Tell me more about those teapots' Sherlock said walking up behind me

'The pots were her obsession; they need urgent work, if they dry out, than the clay can start to crumble. Apparently, you have to just keep making tea in them' Andy explained as Sherlock took a closer look

'What's wrong Sherlock?' John asked confused and when Sherlock wasn't going to reply he looked over at me.

'When we were here yesterday only one of them was shining and now there is two' I explained as John nodded, showing he understood.

'We need to stay here after hours Andy' John told Andy who nodded, still confused.

We turned all the lights off after closing time and waited patiently. Sherlock and I sat up against one wall while John and Andy sat against the opposite wall. I was feeling very tired and didn't notice my eyes drifting closed and my head leaning onto Sherlock's shoulder.

I was awoken by the noise of someone walking around. John and Andy were just standing up and Sherlock looked down at me to see I was now awake and smiled before standing up and helping me up.

'Thank you' I whispered and he smiled.

Sherlock walked into the darkness to talk to the girl while Andy and John went to turn the light on.

As I walked over to Sherlock and the girl I could hear them talking

'You saw the cipher, then you know he is coming for me' Soo Ling spoke quietly

'You have been clever to avoid him so far' Sherlock stated

'I had to finish, finishing this work, it's only a matter of time, I know he will find me' Soo Ling said sadly

'Who is he? Have you met him before?' Sherlock asked

'When I was a girl, we met in China, I recognised his signature' Soo Ling said

'Do you mean the cipher?' I asked and she nodded

'Only he would do this, Zhi Zhu' Soo Ling explained

'Zhi Zhu?' John asked Sherlock

'It means the spider' I explained as Soo Ling started to take off her shoe

'You know this mark?' Soo Ling asked me

'Yes. It's the mark of a Tong' Sherlock answered

'Huh?' John asked

'Ancient crime syndicate, based in China' Sherlock explained and John nodded before looking back at Soo Ling

'Every foot soldier bears the mark, everyone who hauls for them' Soo Ling explained

'Hauls? You mean you were a smuggler?' John asked not hiding his surprise

'I was 15, my parents were dead, I had no livelihood, no way of surviving, day-to-day, except to work for the bosses' Soo Ling explained sadly

'Who are they?' Sherlock asked

'They are called the Black Lotus, by the time I was 16, I was taking thousands of pounds worth of drugs across the border into Hong Kong, I managed to leave that life behind me, I came to England. They gave me a job, here, everything was good, new life' Soo Ling said tears forming in her eyes

'And he came looking for you' I stated

'Yes, I hoped after 5 years maybe they would have forgotten me but they never really let you leave. A small community like ours, they are never very far away. He came to my flat, he asked me to help him to track down something that was stolen' Soo Ling explained

'And you've no idea what it was?' John asked

'I refused to help' Soo Ling explained

'So, you knew him well when you were living back in China?' John asked

'Oh yes, He's my brother' Soo Ling said as Sherlock looked up in shock as John gasped softly. I stayed silent, my eyes looking around the dark museum.

'Two orphans, we had no choice, we could work for the Black Lotus, or starve on the streets, like beggars. My brother has become their puppet in the power of the one they call Shan, the Black Lotus general. I turned my brother away, he said I betrayed him. Next day I came to work and the cipher was waiting.' Soo Ling said sadly. Sherlock pulled out the photos of the symbols I had taken at the train tracks and placed them in front of Soo Ling

'Can you decipher these?' Sherlock asked

'These are numbers' Soo Ling explained

'Yes I know' Sherlock said starting to get impatiently

'Here, the line across the man's eyes, it's the Chinese number one' Soo Ling explained

'And this one is 15, but what's the code?' Sherlock asked

'All smugglers know it' Soo Ling stated when suddenly the lights when out.

'He's here' Soo Ling said softly, Sherlock stood up looking around the darkness

'Zhi Zhu has found me' Soo Ling taking a sharp breath

'No, no Sherlock' John called out as Sherlock took off into another room. I stood up as well; John and I moved Soo Ling into another room and waiting silently. We heard gun shots coming from down the hall and I looked over at John

'I have to go and help him, bolt the door after me' John told me and I nodded before he bolted out the door as well. I looked at Soo Ling who was quiet. She grabbed the photos and wrote down some words on it before shoving them into my pocket. I looked at her confused before her eyes widened and looked past me. I closed my eyes and waited for the blow I knew would be coming. I heard a weapon get lifted up behind and then it all went black.


	16. Chapter 16

I woke up and as I opened my eye I saw darkness, I noticed I was tied to a chair and I could feel the blood trickling down my head. I sighed loudly

'Ah my little sweetheart as finally awoke' I heard a males voice speak and I froze, I know that voice anywhere

'Moriarty' I spoke, my voice soft but steady, I couldn't see him in the shadows but I knew he was there, watching me

'Aren't you glad to be back in my company Tage' He said laughing, I growled angrily at him

'I see my presents to you haven't faded, what did the great Sherlock Holmes think about your scars?' He asked and I looked down and noticed I wasn't wearing my jacket anymore, revealing my scared arms.

'Give me my jacket back' I growled angrily as I struggled against the ropes around my wrists.

'No I don't think so' He said in a high pitch, musical voice.

'I am surprised you have managed to hide our past from the great Sherlock Holmes, the man who knows everything' He said laughing again, I could tell from his voice that he was walking around me in circles.

'But then again you have always been his weakest link Tage' He whispered in my ear from behind me. I threw my head back and managed to collide with what I can only guess was his head as I heard him grunt in pain before laughing

'Ah Tage always did put up a fight but never fear, I'm not going to keep you this time, I am going to give you back to dear Sherlock as the more he hangs out with you means the more his feeling for you will be revealed and you will become even more of his weakest link' He said in a childish voice again

'It won't work Moriarty' I called out to him

'And why is that love?' He asked in a sarcastic voice

'Because you under estimate Sherlock and you underestimate me' I said whispering the last part as I stood up, my hands no longer bound by the rope. I heard him laughing nervously.

'You really are a unique woman Tage but you efforts are useless I have you outnumbered' He said with a sigh and I heard 3 more people moving around me. I closed my eyes and listened to the movement, I heard a person move close behind me and I swung around and hit them but then I was grabbed from behind and once again I was hit in the head with something hard, the last thing I remember is hearing Moriarty's laugh before fading into unconsciousness once more.


	17. Chapter 17

I woke up once more and I was tied to a chair, chains around my wrists and I could feel alot of blood dripping down my head. I looked down and saw my jacket was ripped in a few places. I struggled to look around and I groaned

'Tage' I heard John say and I looked to my left to find John tied to a chair beside me and next to him was a women who was tied and gagged

'Hello' I muttered

'What happened?' I asked, not remembering anything after being with Sherlock, John and Soo Ling in the museum

'You got kidnapped in the museum by Zhi Zhu, who killed Soo Ling' John explained sadly and I nodded my head.

'This is Sarah, my date' John said introducing me to the woman tied and gagged next to him.

'Hello' I said calmly and she nodded back but anyone could tell she was terrified.

'A book is like a magic garden, carried in your pocket' a woman said as her and some big men walked down to us. I looked around; it looked like we are in a giant pipe but I couldn't see much in the little light

'Chinese proverb, Mr and Mrs Holmes' the woman said to John and I

'I'm not Sherlock Holmes' John said at the same time I said

'I'm not Mrs Holmes'

'Forgive me if I do not take your words for it' She sneered

'Ow' John muttered as the woman grabbed his wallet out

'debit card, name of S Holmes' the Woman read out

'Yes, that's not actually mine, he lent that to me' John explained

'And a cheque for $5000 made out in the names of Mr Sherlock Holmes' the woman continued

'Yeah, he gave me that to look after' John explained again

'Tickets from the theatre collected by you, name of Holmes' the woman continued

'Yes, ok, I realise what this looks like but I'm not him' John tried to explain

'We heard it from your own mouth' the woman explained

'What?' John asked confused while I looked from the woman to John

'I am Sherlock Holmes and I always work alone' she said

'Did I really say that?' John asked confused

'You yelled it when Sherlock and I was in the apartment' I whispered to him and a look of realisation fell upon his face

'Ah yes Mrs, Holmes' the woman turned to me

'I am not Mrs. Holmes, you however are Shan, the Black Lotus general' I said back to her my voice firm, her eyes showed surprised but it was gone quickly and she walked up to me

'Only Mrs. Holmes would be able to find that out about me and would travel around with Sherlock Holmes on a daily basis' Shan explained, her face inches from mine

'If you knew anything at all, you would know Sherlock Holmes is not married and does not have a sister, therefore there is no possible way that I could be a Holmes' I sneered at her, surprising John. Shan hit me across the head with her gun and turned back to John

'As Mrs. Holmes as pointed out. I am Shan; three times we tried to kill you Mr. Holmes. What does it tell you when an assassin cannot shoot straight?' Shan asked with a gun pointed to Johns head

'That they are not really trying' I muttered before I could stop myself, but I achieved my goal. Shan was now pointing her gun at me

'Are you sure about that Mrs. Holmes' Shan asked me with a sick smile on her face

I looked in her eyes and mentally smiled. I nodded my head at her and Shan pulled the trigger only for nothing to happen

'Very good Mrs. Holmes' she sneered at me. She grabbed another gun and pointed it at John

'Not blank bullets now' Shan explained

'Ok' John said breathing heavily

'If we wanted to kill you Mr. Holmes, we would have done it by now. We just want to make you inquisitive. Do you have it?' Shan asked curiously

'Do I have what?' John asked confused

'The treasure' Shan said

'I don't know what you're talking about' John said

'I would prefer to make certain' Shan said as she revealed an ancient Chinese arrow shooting device. They are deadly, I quickly noted.

'Everything in the West has its price, and the price for her life – information' Shan said as 2 of the males went to grab Sarah's chair, who started to freak out

'Wait!' I shouted and they stopped while Shan looked at me.

'Wouldn't it make more sense if it was me, I mean I am Mrs. Holmes and that is Mr. Holmes, wouldn't he be more likely to tell information if it was my life' I explained quickly looking at a frightened Sarah and a pleading John. Shan thought about it for a moment

'If he does not talk for her than we will use you' Shan stated with nod before the men continued to place Sarah in front of the arrow device

'Where's the hairpin?' Shan asked

'What?' John asked annoyed and scared

'The empress pin valued at 9 million, we already have a buyer in the West and then one of our people was greedy and he took it, brought it back to London and you, Mr. Holmes have been searching' Shan said getting annoyed

'Please, please, listen to me, I'm not Sherlock Holmes, you have to believe me. I haven't found what you're looking for' John said struggling against his bonds.

'I need a volunteer from the audience' Shan shouted as if she was doing a show. I could see down the end of the pipe a shadow, I wasn't certain if it was Sherlock but I took my chance.

'Wait!' I shouted again

'If you hurt her I won't tell you where it is' I said venomously to Shan

'You are lying' Shan said but she was uncertain

'Are you willing to take that chance Shan? Kill her and I'll take it to my grave' I snapped at her.

'I will make you talk' Shan said as she stabbed the bag of sand.

'I doubt that, I have been through worse than anything you could do to me and you just sealed you fate, in which you will never find the pin' I said dangerously to her. John looked at me confused but I ignored him

'I'm not Sherlock Holmes' John shouted

'I don't believe you' Shan said

'You should you know, Sherlock Holmes is nothing at all like him' Sherlock shouted from in the darkness. I smirked but then realised the sand was still falling.

'How would you describe me John?' Sherlock asked

'Resourceful, dynamic, enigmatic' Sherlock continued to say while Shan walked towards the voice

'Late' John muttered.

'That's a semi-automatic. If you fire it, the bullet will travel at over 1,000 metres per second' Sherlock said from the darkness

'Well?' Shan asked

'Well,' Sherlock said as he ran through the darkness, knocking out a man

'The radius curvature of these walls is nearly hour metres. If you miss, the bullet will ricochet, could hit anyone, might even bounce off the tunnel and hit you' Sherlock said before running and knocking over one of the fire barrels creating light in the tunnel

Sherlock appeared behind Sarah and started trying to untie her.

'Sherlock behind you' I shouted but the man already had tied something around Sherlock's neck chocking him.

Sherlock tried to fight back as I struggled to get out of my chains; Sarah was looking at the arrow pointed at her, scared while John was trying to move his chair towards the arrow device. I groaned loudly as I managed to pop my shoulder out of place while trying to get out of my chains. John's chair fell over and as the sand continued to fall, Sherlock was continuing to try to fight against his opponent and just as the arrow shot, John moved the device and it got Sherlock's opponent in the gut, killing him. Everyone sighed in relief as Sherlock quickly untied Sarah

'It's ok, it's over now' Sherlock whispered to Sarah

'Don't worry; next date won't be like this' John said from the fall as I rolled my eyes at him. Sarah continued to cry as Sherlock quickly untied John, who ran over to Sarah and wrapped his arms around her.

Sherlock came over to me next, he swore as he saw I was chained not bound by ropes, he knelt down in front of me and grabbed my face lightly

'Are you ok Tage?' He whispered to me and I nodded while looking into his eyes.

'Injuries' he asked

'My shoulder is dislocated, my head is bleeding, and possible broken ribs' I listed off the top of my head.

'Ok, I need to pick the lock and then I can put your shoulder back in ok Tage' Sherlock said softly to me and I nodded.

He went around to the back and fiddled with the chains for a moment before they fell off me. He did the same to the ones around my legs. I looked down at my wrists and saw they were bleeding badly. I looked up to see Sherlock's concerned eyes watching me. I wrapped my arms around him as he did the same back. He gentle lifted me too my feet but as I put pressure on my left foot I almost screamed out in pain, Sherlock lifted me off the ground to relieve the pressure. I looked down and saw my ankle was bloodied and bruised. Sherlock picked me up bridal style and carried me out of, what I suddenly realised was the tramway.

The police were already there when we got out, John must have called them. Sherlock walked past Dimmock while still carrying me, I was half conscious against his chest.

'We'll just slip off, no need to mention us in your report' Sherlock stated

'Mr. Holmes . . . 'Dimmock started to say

'I have high hopes for you inspector, a glittering career' Sherlock said truthfully

'I go where you point me' Dimmock said

'Exactly' Sherlock said as we walked towards John and Sarah

'Is she awake?' Sarah said her voice shaking badly

'Just' Sherlock whispered as he looked down at me

'Thank you Tage' Sarah muttered and I smiled weakly at her before falling into unconsciousness.


	18. Chapter 18

A few weeks later I was laying on the lounge while Sherlock was on the computer at the table. I was bored to say the least, since my kidnapping John and Sherlock hadn't let me go on any of the new cases until I was fully healed and it was getting rather annoying.

Suddenly Sherlock stood up and grabbed his jacket. I stood up too grabbing my crutches

'Where are we going?' I asked hoping I was actually going to go somewhere today

'I am going to Minsk, Belarus, you are going to stay here and rest your shoulder and foot' Sherlock said and I groaned

'But I am fine Sherlock, please let me come with you!' I whined childishly, Sherlock smirked before kneeling in front of me.

'Tage you can join in on the next case' He promised before disappearing out the door. I groaned loudly as I sat down on the lounge again.

John walked through the door a few hours and saw me throwing a ball up in the air and catching it and then throwing it against the wall and catching it. John laughed at me as I repeated the action.

'You think I'm right to get out of the house don't you?' I asked and John smiled at me

'Get out of the house, yes, but go on cases with Sherlock Holmes, not yet' John commented earning a groan from me again. John came and sat down next to me, thinking hard about something

'Tage, what did you mean when you said to Shan 'I have been through worse than anything you could do to me'?' John asked and I sighed and looked down at my hands, which had become very interesting.

'It's nothing John' I muttered and I felt a hand on mine. I looked up to see John looking at me.

'Tage, Sherlock cares a lot about you, we both do, if something happened to you, you can trust us. Although it is funny that there is finally something Sherlock can't figure out' John said laughing a bit at the last few words to lighten the mood. I laughed silently too before sobering up and moving my hand away from John

'I like my secrets John, I like the way Sherlock looks at me now, if I told him the truth, Sherlock wouldn't look at me the same, I don't want that' I said softly before walking up to my room and laying on my bed. I let a few tears escape my eyes before falling asleep.

'_Ah my little sweetheart as finally awoke' I heard a males voice speak and I froze, I know that voice anywhere_

'_Moriarty' I spoke, my voice soft but steady, I couldn't see him in the shadows but I knew he was there, watching me_

'_Aren't you glad to be back in my company Tage' He said laughing, I growled angrily at him_

I tossed and turned in my sleep.

'_I am surprised you have managed to hide our past from the great Sherlock Holmes, the man who knows everything' He said laughing again, I could tell from his voice that he was walking around me in circles._

'_But then again you have always been his weakest link Tage' He whispered in my ear from behind me. I threw my head back and managed to collide with what I can only guess was his head as I heard him grunt in pain before laughing_

'_Ah Tage always did put up a fight but never fear, I'm not going to keep you this time, I am going to give you back to dear Sherlock as the more he hangs out with you means the more his feeling for you will be revealed and you will become even more of his weakest link' He said in a childish voice again_

I woke up in a cold sweat, panting heavily. I looked around the room and sighed. I couldn't tell if that actually happened or if it was just a dream, but either way I knew I wouldn't be sleeping again that night


End file.
